The outgoing President and Chairman of the African Export-Import Bank, Prof. Benedict Oramah, has announced that the bank will employ 250,000 workers as part of a $5 billion textile project set to commence in Nigeria by July.

Oramah made the disclosure on Friday during his closing address at the 32nd Afreximbank Annual Meetings.

He said that industrialisation remains central to Africa’s economic transformation, adding that Afreximbank continues to prioritise and invest significantly in building industrial infrastructure across the continent.

Oramah said, “The Bank and Arise IIP, jointly owned by the Bank, AFC, and Equitane—an equity fund—have invested in the development of Special Industrial Zones in Benin, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Togo, and are at various stages of developing others in Angola, DRC, Kenya, Malawi, and Zimbabwe.”

He added that the Bank’s investments since 2011 have totaled approximately $2 billion, significantly reshaping the economies of beneficiary countries by driving SME growth, job creation, and trade in value-added products.

In Nigeria, he noted, a Special Agro-Industrial Zone is currently under development and is expected to be inaugurated later this year.

According to him, the zone will host agro-allied industries alongside light and heavy manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy ventures, and logistics facilities.

“In July this year, we will break ground for the development of a large integrated textile facility that is expected to employ about 250,000 workers.

“This will be one of the largest textile facilities being developed under a $5 billion partnership entered into by Arise IIP, Afreximbank, and the Swiss textile equipment giant, Reitter, and supported by the Swiss Government,” he added.

He noted that the facility, a larger version of an existing one in Benin Republic, is designed to produce 350,000 tonnes of garments annually, potentially saving Nigeria around $4.7 billion in imports and revitalising the country’s cotton industry.

In June 2024, the Nigerian federal government signed a $3.5 billion agreement with Afreximbank to support the textile sector and promote the adoption of Compressed Natural Gas vehicles, among other initiatives.